The current market for flame retardants is since many years dominated by products containing different bromine compositions. Bromine is one of the most toxic existing halogens very damageable to human beings and to the environment. Inter alia flame retardant products with bromides contain dioxins, which on a long time basis can mutate the genome (DNA) of human beings.
Since flame retardants containing bromide make that much damage a debate is on the agenda in large parts of the world. The European Union has decided that flame retardants containing bromides are to be phased out at the latest in the year 2012 to be replaced by products that are environment friendly. In Sweden alone there exist about 70 brands of flame retardants containing bromide, which all eventually will be forbidden. Moreover, the company Apple® is said to stop utilizing bromides at the latest in the year 2012.
Studies at the hospital “Rigshospitalet” in Copenhagen revealed a correlation of deformations on boys genitals regarding the utilization of flame retardants.
At the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm-Solna, research has revealed a correlation between bromide and brain damages on adults and children.
Therefore there has been a long felt need for an environment friendly alternative to toxic flame retardants.
The patent document GB 2165270 A describes a flame retardant containing bromides.
Another flame retardant ingredient is compositions/compounds of borax such as boric acid, which are expensive and there is a shortage of them. Moreover, there exists a concern that borax is more toxic then what has yet been recognized. Local city authorities do not like the use of borax in flame retardant, because sooner or later it will end up in the sewers where borax can react with other chemicals.
Hence, there is an incentive to replace borax compositions from flame retardants, which are pointed out in the paper to Day, M and Wiles, D. M; “Combustibility of loose fiber fill cellulose insulation II. The role of a third chemical component in a borax: boric acid system”; Journal of Consumer Product Flammability, (Marc 1979), Vol. 6, pages 20-27. This paper discloses salts like sodium phosphate tribasic and ammonium sulphate in a mixture with borax and boric acid as a flame retardant. But the paper only discloses a partly replacement of borax compositions, but not an entire replacement of them. Furthermore, it refers to the paper “E. V. Anderson, Boric Acid Future in Insulation Uncertain. Chem. and Eng. News 56, (15) 11 (1978).”.